Wright Investors Service Inc. boosted its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 35.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,675 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 2,025 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy Corporation were worth $518,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Independent Portfolio Consultants Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation by 62.2% in the second quarter. Independent Portfolio Consultants Inc. now owns 1,614 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation by 190.3% in the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 1,701 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation by 0.6% in the first quarter. Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America now owns 1,746 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in Valero Energy Corporation during the first quarter worth $127,000. Finally, Americafirst Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy Corporation by 47.6% in the first quarter. Americafirst Capital Management LLC now owns 2,181 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $145,000 after buying an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.88% of the company’s stock.

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Shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE VLO) traded up 0.31% during midday trading on Friday, hitting $64.75. The company had a trading volume of 3,082,623 shares. The company has a market capitalization of $28.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 1.21. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $51.17 and a 12-month high of $71.40. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $67.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.09.

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The oil and gas company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $22.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.32 billion. Valero Energy Corporation had a net margin of 2.17% and a return on equity of 8.59%. The business’s revenue was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.07 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post $4.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 9th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 7th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. Valero Energy Corporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.14%.

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VLO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Credit Suisse Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Valero Energy Corporation in a research report on Wednesday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered Valero Energy Corporation from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $77.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 30th. Citigroup Inc. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price target (up from $69.50) on shares of Valero Energy Corporation in a research report on Saturday, April 22nd. BidaskClub upgraded Valero Energy Corporation from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 13th. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The) lowered Valero Energy Corporation from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $65.55 to $73.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.59.

In other news, Director Susan Kaufman Purcell sold 5,151 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.68, for a total value of $333,166.68. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,866 shares in the company, valued at $638,132.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy Corporation

Valero Energy Corporation (Valero) is an independent petroleum refiner and ethanol producer. The Company’s segments include refining, ethanol and Valero Energy Partners LP (VLP). The refining segment includes its refining operations and the associated marketing activities. The ethanol segment includes its ethanol operations and the associated marketing activities, and logistics assets that support its ethanol operations.

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